How to succeed in a 2-person event by yourself?

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geniusjohn5
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How to succeed in a 2-person event by yourself?

Post by geniusjohn5 »

I was forced to be with this partner who hasn't even taken physics yet, while I took both AP Physics 1 and 2. I'm hoping to carry the team, but I also want him to learn the basics of the event (namely, circuit lab). Anybody have experiences like these? Does anyone have any suggestions on how to succeed? I'm only looking to place at the regional competition.
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Re: How to succeed in a 2-person event by yourself?

Post by Unome »

geniusjohn5 wrote:I was forced to be with this partner who hasn't even taken physics yet, while I took both AP Physics 1 and 2. I'm hoping to carry the team, but I also want him to learn the basics of the event (namely, circuit lab). Anybody have experiences like these? Does anyone have any suggestions on how to succeed? I'm only looking to place at the regional competition.
If you have time, teach your partner some stuff before the competition. Do the test yourself while using your partner for assistance (e.g. bubbling answers, possibly some help with the practical portion). If you finish the test with enough time to spare, you could probably teach him some stuff as you check your work.
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Re: How to succeed in a 2-person event by yourself?

Post by JoeyC »

A. If you can choose your regional (some states allow it), run to the easiest regional
B. Give them the job of history; Circuit Lab also has history and concepts in it, not just Circuit analysis, so give him those subjects.
C. Be an absolute savage. I soloed a fourth place in Thermo, which is mainly AP Physics 2
I recommend option B, because your partner can help take out the easy questions.
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Re: How to succeed in a 2-person event by yourself?

Post by jimmy-bond »

This happened to me at both of the invitationals I've been to, where I was intentionally paired up with people who knew nothing about the event so I could be tested. You can do as other people mentioned (teach them) if they're planning on staying in the event longterm. However, I have other personal strategies and tasks for "ghost partners" as I refer them as.
1. Have them talk really loudly about the wrong answers for mind game purposes
2. Have them write out answers like short responses or vocab (my handwriting is terrible)
3. Give them calculations to do. I write out the formula for them to use and ask them to do it, which really relieves stress because calculations imo are extremely boring, long, and monotonous. This last one is probably the most useful in a physics-oriented event as it has a strong emphasis on mathematics.

I know this may seem demoralizing to my ghost partners, but if I do well enough, I get them a medal. They also plan to have no longterm commitment to the event, meaning it would be a waste to teach content to them. Finally, most of my ghost partners are my friends, so they don't mind being treated poorly. I hope this helps! If you feel like it, I highly suggest using the other strategies mentioned by others, but this is always a fair last resort.
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Re: How to succeed in a 2-person event by yourself?

Post by Galahad »

jimmy-bond wrote:This happened to me at both of the invitationals I've been to, where I was intentionally paired up with people who knew nothing about the event so I could be tested. You can do as other people mentioned (teach them) if they're planning on staying in the event longterm. However, I have other personal strategies and tasks for "ghost partners" as I refer them as.
1. Have them talk really loudly about the wrong answers for mind game purposes
2. Have them write out answers like short responses or vocab (my handwriting is terrible)
3. Give them calculations to do. I write out the formula for them to use and ask them to do it, which really relieves stress because calculations imo are extremely boring, long, and monotonous. This last one is probably the most useful in a physics-oriented event as it has a strong emphasis on mathematics.

I know this may seem demoralizing to my ghost partners, but if I do well enough, I get them a medal. They also plan to have no longterm commitment to the event, meaning it would be a waste to teach content to them. Finally, most of my ghost partners are my friends, so they don't mind being treated poorly. I hope this helps! If you feel like it, I highly suggest using the other strategies mentioned by others, but this is always a fair last resort.
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Re: How to succeed in a 2-person event by yourself?

Post by jimmy-bond »

Galahad wrote:me in pots
Except your handwriting is worse
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Re: How to succeed in a 2-person event by yourself?

Post by MattChina »

Yeah when I carry events, I have horrible handwriting so i let my partner write stuff
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Re: How to succeed in a 2-person event by yourself?

Post by ScottMaurer19 »

geniusjohn5 wrote:I was forced to be with this partner who hasn't even taken physics yet, while I took both AP Physics 1 and 2. I'm hoping to carry the team, but I also want him to learn the basics of the event (namely, circuit lab). Anybody have experiences like these? Does anyone have any suggestions on how to succeed? I'm only looking to place at the regional competition.
My team is often short on people for Fossils this year and Rocks last year so I have a bit of experience either going in with drafts or just simply by myself, even if people do not consider these events as "two person" events. My first suggestion is that you primarily focus on the event you are trying to carry and make your other event partners aware so that they can pick up some of the slack in your other events if need be. I would also suggest that YOU be the one to write the answers in as you will lose much more time trying to relay info through them, telling them how to spell, correcting errors, etc. than if you were to just write the answers correctly yourself (granted this means you have to do binder/cheat sheet and writing but is much worth it imo).

My final suggestion is for the teaching the basics of the event while actually in the event. If you have the time/are able to think out loud without losing any efficiency, then explain everything to your partner as you are doing it/checking over your answers.
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Re: How to succeed in a 2-person event by yourself?

Post by Birdmusic »

geniusjohn5 wrote:I was forced to be with this partner who hasn't even taken physics yet, while I took both AP Physics 1 and 2. I'm hoping to carry the team, but I also want him to learn the basics of the event (namely, circuit lab). Anybody have experiences like these? Does anyone have any suggestions on how to succeed? I'm only looking to place at the regional competition.
The following online textbook really helped me with basic circuit analysis even though I have no other prior electricity/magnetism background: https://www.allaboutcircuits.com/textbook/
Also, a couple videos on Khanacademy doesn't hurt! :D
There's a website known as circuitlab.com, could be useful if you can figure out how it works.
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Re: How to succeed in a 2-person event by yourself?

Post by OpticsNerd »

You will just need to work even harder to succeed.
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